


How to Get a Man in Seven Days

by mickeysaint



Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, M/M, tino tries to work out but ends up staring at hot men at the gym
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-02-24
Updated: 2017-08-31
Packaged: 2018-09-26 14:53:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 4,930
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9907460
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mickeysaint/pseuds/mickeysaint
Summary: Gym AU. After putting on a considerable amount of weight during the holidays, Tino decides to turn over a new chapter by finally signing up for a membership at his local gym. Little does he know he's about to get more than what he bargained for when he meets another regular gym member, the strong but silent Berwald.





	1. New Year's Resolution

**Author's Note:**

> a fanfic that's been in my drafts folder for wayy to long. enjoy!
> 
> my tumblr: danxnorge.tumblr.com

_Come on Tino, you can do this. New year, new me._

Tino looked up nervously at the enormous building before him. In giant purple letters, he read the words 'Planet Fitness' across the building's facade. Tino sighed. He was definitely at the right place, but just to make sure, he pulled out his phone to triple check the gym's address. Sure enough, he had gotten the right one.  
Still, Tino was hesitant about going in. He clutched his duffel bag and sighed again as he contemplated about whether or not to go through with this. As much as he didn't want to do this, he knew he had to. Ever since the holidays, Tino had gained a lot of weight that he couldn't seem to lose. To his horror, his stomach started bulging out.  
On the other hand, however, Tino was really, really intimidated by the gym. Or rather, by the people in it. Everyone he saw that entered the gym were all already so slim and fit that it made Tino feel a bit ashamed of his own body. Where were all the normal-looking people like him?

Tino had to wait quite a while, but finally he spotted two elderly women making their way towards the gym's entrance. He quickly followed them inside, feeling slightly more confident about going to the gym now knowing he wasn't the only "average" looking person at the gym (he would later find out how wrong he was about these two elderly ladies— despite their looks, they were quite extreme bodybuilders).

A wave of icy-cold air instantly hit his face as the automatic doors opened up for him. Tino shut his eyes from the sudden blast on of wind, and when he opened them back up he felt like he had left earth and stepped into a completely different realm. He was taken aback by the sounds of weights crashing down and the chattering of people around him. It didn’t look as big on the outside, but on the inside the gym was three stories high— it even had an Olympic-sized indoor pool.

 _Alright, you made it inside_. Tino thought to himself. _Now onto step 2._

Tino stumbled his way to the reception desk, where a white-haired man was busy talking on the phone. He was the only worker behind the desk, so Tino had to awkwardly wait for him to finish his phone call. After a couple of minutes, the worker finally hung up the phone. Pinned onto his shirt was his name tag, which read “Gilbert Beilschmidt: Personal Trainer”.

"Sorry about the wait! We're a little short on staff at the moment," Gilbert explained. "Anyway, welcome to Planet Fitness! I haven't seen you around here, are you a new member?"

Tino quickly nodded his head yes. Right at that moment, a tall, brooding figure came up from behind him. Tino looked up to see a rather attractive (albeit scary-looking) blond man with glasses. _Who is he,_ Tino wondered.

"Just a moment," Gilbert said to Tino. He turned to the other man and went for a fist bump. "What's up Berwald? Signing in?"

"Mhmm." was all he said in response. He pulled out his membership card for Gilbert to scan before silently walking away.

"Always great talking to you, Berwald!" Gilbert called out. As soon as he left, Gilbert walked out from behind the front desk.

"Hey Al, take over for me, will ya? I've got a new member to deal with." He declared to his coworker.

Tino winced. He wished Gilbert hadn't just announced to everyone in the gym that he was a new member. He discreetly followed Gilbert to one of the cubicles where they would take care of his registration process. After he put a down payment and filled out all the paperwork, Gilbert handed him his brand-new gym membership card. Once he received the card, Tino was ready to go out at explore the gym.

"Wait!" He heard Gilbert exclaim. "Don’t you want a tour of the gym and everything? I know some of the machines may look a little confusing on how to work..."

"Oh no, it's okay." Tino interrupted. Gilbert looked like he was already busy enough, so Tino didn't want to take up too much of his time.

Tino wandered his way to the workout machines on the ground level of the gym. He had to admit, he had never seen machines like this before so he had no idea how to work them. Damn, maybe he should have taken up Gilbert’s offer. He read the name of one of the machines: bicep curler.

 _Bicep curler? What's that?_ Tino wondered. He knew it was on his arm somewhere, but that was pretty much it. Not knowing what else to do, he sat down at the machine and read the instructions conveniently printed on each of the machines. The instructions made it seem so simple, but when Tino tried to lift the handles of the machine, it wouldn't budge. Tino sat there, dumfounded. Was he really that weak?

Tino looked ahead of him and saw the blond man he had seen at the front desk working effortlessly at one of the machines. What was his name again? His name had slipped Tino's mind. But that wasn't important at that moment, right now Tino was too busy watching him work out. He watched as the man's arm muscles tightened and loosened as he worked at the... oh heck, Tino couldn't name the machine even if he tried. All he knew was that that man was definitely a piece of eye candy. A faint line of sweat formed on the man's brow, so he took a brief moment to take the towel from around him neck to wipe it away. He looked up and briefly made eye contact with Tino, prompting him to quickly look away. He then left his station and went to another machine farther away from the man. If he was going to stare, he should at least be more discreet about it.  
Tino's first day at the gym was basically him pretending to work out as he stared at a hot guy work out. His plans for the gym definitely weren't working out the way he had intended, but Tino wasn't complaining. He told himself that he was only staring at the hot guy to help himself figure out how to work the machines, which was only half true. Tino went to the gym two more times that week, and the hot guy was there both times as well. Sometimes Tino would straight up forget that he was supposed to pretend to work out and just stare at him. He wished he could find some way to introduce himself- though he felt that he was way past the point of a normal introduction. He wondered if the man even knew he existed.

"Excuse me." A voice called out from behind him one day. Tino turned to see a cheery man with spiky dirty blond hair with his arms crossed standing behind him. "Sorry to bother you, but you're not using that machine for its intended purpose."

Tino was startled. He had been too distracted by the hot guy. "H-huh?"

The guy laughed. "Well, it's not that you're using it wrong, it's just that you're trying to lift 300 pounds." He pointed at the machines weights. "Here, you can adjust the weights by pulling out this metal rod and sticking it into a different one." As he said that, he pulled out the rod and inserted it into the 5-pound weight. "Is that better?" He asked.  
Tino pushed at the handlebars of the machine he was working at. "Oh! Yes, it's much easier. But it feels too light now." Tino explained.

"Hmm...How about I keep adjusting the weights until it's the right amount? We don't want you lifting anything too heavy, but it shouldn't be too light either. We need to challenge you a bit." He began adjusting and readjusting the weights, until Tino finally was satisfied with lifting 35 pounds. Little by little, he was instructed to increase the amount of weights to carry.

"Oh! Thank you so much for helping me out, mister!" Tino exclaimed. Finally, he felt like he was doing something right.

The man laughed again and pointed at the nametag on his shirt, which Tino hadn't noticed until now. "It's Mathias Kohler. I'm one of the personal trainers."

"Oh, it’s nice to meet you! I'm Tino Väinämöinen... I'm a pastry chef." Tino replied.

"Well it's nice to meet you, Tino-the-pastry-chef," Mathias said as he extended his hand for Tino to shake. "You look like a new member. What brings you to our gym?"

Tino pointed at his bulging belly. "I'm trying to get rid of this. I'm getting too chubby."

Just then, Mathias raised his hand and yelled "I'll be right there!" He turned to Tino. "I gotta go, my next client is here. But hey, don't feel bad about your belly fat. What's important is that you're trying. Besides, it could be worse," he said as he discreetly pointed at his client waiting for him at the front desk. "You could have man boobs."

Mathias walked away backwards from Tino so that he was still facing him. "I've noticed that you've only been using the machines on this floor. You might want to use the elliptical and stationary bikes upstairs! Anyway, it was nice meeting you, Tino. Hopefully we'll be seeing more of each other again!" With that, Mathias turned around and met up with his client.

_Hmm, maybe getting a personal trainer wasn't such a bad idea._


	2. Pining! at the Gym

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hope you're enjoying the fic so far (: Lukas makes his debut in this chapter!

Tino requested that Mathias be his personal trainer, but unfortunately for him, he was booked for the next couple of months. Apparently, he had a request rate of 72%, so it didn't look like he'd get in anytime soon. Tino looked down the list through the approval ratings of the rest of the personal trainers at Planet Fitness. There was Gilbert Beilschmidt, who he had met on his first day, and Alfred F. Jones, but they too were fully booked due to their high ratings. The rest of the personal trainers didn't look very friendly, so he gave up looking for a trainer. It didn't really matter to him, anyway. He had been going to the gym for three weeks now and he had started getting used to the flow of it. And well, it helped that he had some man candy to stare at as he worked out. He'd later discover that the hot guy's name was Berwald (Gilbert had shouted it out in an attempt to strike up a conversation with him).  

Even though he couldn't book Mathias as his personal trainer, he still managed to see him from time to time, in between Mathias's clients. Tino only got to see Mathias 10 minutes at most, but he sure did an effective job in helping Tino work out. After doing 5 sit ups one time, Tino was exhausted and wanted to give up, but Mathias convinced him to do 15 more. It was a struggle, but he did it. He could feel the burn in his abdomen.  

"Hey, Mathias?" Tino asked during one of their mini workout sessions. "Do you know anything about that Berwald guy?" In the month that he had known Berwald, he had said exactly one word to him: sorry. And that was because he had accidentally-on-purpose bumped into him.  

He shrugged. "Besides the fact that his name's Berwald and that he's been a member for the past two years, I don’t know much else. He comes in every weekday and works out alone. Never talks." Mathias explained. "I gave up on trying to get to know the guy, though Gil clearly hasn't given up." He pointed at his white-haired coworker, who was once again trying to initiate a conversation with Berwald. "It's like talking to a wall." 

Tino was a bit disappointed by Mathias's answer. He had been hoping for something more.  

Now, being a pastry chef and going to the gym wasn't working out for Tino. As much as he tried to resist, he couldn't help but have a little taste of his own creations. Everyone at Quake, the restaurant he worked at, loved his desserts- himself included. His efforts at getting rid of his belly fat backfired as soon as he stuffed a forkful of angel cake into his mouth. Cheating on his diet never tasted so good.  

He had completely forgotten to go to the gym that week, so he was completely dismayed when he weighed himself. Thanks to his "midnight snacks", Tino had gained more weight than he lost. To make up for it, he decided to go to the gym on a Saturday.  

The weekend crowd at the gym was much more relaxed than the weekday crowd. For one, he didn't see as much of the muscle-freaks that he usually bumped into. Tino sighed with relief. Maybe he should go to the gym on Saturdays more often.  

Tino examined the list of activities on the white board at the front desk. There was a water aerobics class starting in 5 minutes, but Tino didn't bring his swimsuit. He trailed his finger down the list. Kickboxing? That sounded dangerous. Finally he found a class that sounded interesting to him. Pilates, with Lukas Bondevik as the instructor. The class would start in 15 minutes at one of the studios on the third level, so Tino signed his name and made his way up to his new class.  

He didn't have a mat prepared, but luckily one of the other students had an extra one handy. He made polite conversation with the other people in the room before a slender, light blond-haired man walked to the front of the room.  

"Alright people, welcome to Pilates class. I'm your instructor, Lukas Bondevik. Please refrain from calling me Lu-lu or anything like that, I hate that nickname." He set his yoga mat and speakers on the floor before turning to his class. "If you're looking for kickboxing, it's on the floor below us, so leave now if you're in the wrong place." 

After one or two people left, Lukas turned on his speakers and blasted out some motivating workout music. For the next half hour, Tino worked up a sweat as he followed Lukas's instructions. He had no idea that Pilates could be such a workout. During the last five minutes of the workout, he noticed a familiar face enter the room to join them. Tino smiled and gave a little wave to Mathias. Lukas just rolled his eyes as he wrapped up his session. Finally he moved on to the cool-down portion to end his workout.  

"Good job today, people! Make sure to come back next week!" Lukas said. A couple of people stayed behind to thank Lukas for a good session and he made brief conversation with him. After they left, Tino walked up to Lukas to thank him as well.  

"Good class today, Mr. Lukas. It was quite a vigorous workout. I'm Tino, by the way." He said as he extended his hand.  

"You must be one of my newer students. I'm glad you liked it." Lukas answered as he shook Tino's hand. "If you're interested, I also help teach a Zumba class later today." 

"I think I've had enough workout for today, but perhaps next time. I'll see you next week." 

Mathias said bye to Tino when he left the room. Finally it was just him and Lukas, much to the latter man's dismay.  

"You don't work here on Saturdays." Lukas said coldly as he rolled up his mat. He avoided making eye contact with Mathias.  

"I know, I just came here to see you." Mathias responded.  

"Well, you see me. Goodbye now."  

Before he could walk away, Mathias grabbed his hand, prompting Lukas to jerk back. "Wait, I wanted to tell you something! I was looking through the employees’ manual, and it's not against the rules for coworkers to date." Mathias explained. "We don't even technically work together. I'm here on the weekdays and you're here on the weekends."  

Lukas sighed as he wrapped up his speaker cords. "What do you want, Mathias?" 

"Well, do you want to go out with me?"  

"For the fourth time, no. No, I don't want to go out with you. Why can’t you get that through that thick head of yours?" Lukas said, poking Mathias in the forehead. He picked up the rest of his things. "So stop asking me and hoping for a different result." 

Heartbroken after being rejected for the fourth time, Mathias turned and left the gym. He'd later call up his coworkers, Gilbert and Alfred, to have a much needed alcohol-and-vent session.  

* * *

 "Man, forget that Lukas what’s-his-face." Alfred blurted out as he slammed down his empty glass of beer. He motioned to the bartender for a refill. "What you need is a new piece of maaan candy."  

"A new piece of what now?" Mathias asked.  

"Don't listen to this guy; he clearly can't handle his alcohol." Gilbert said as he finished his third glass. "Damn, this beer sure tastes good. It's almost as awesome as me." He looked up at Mathias. "Anyway, what Al's trying to say is, you need to move on. You've been pining over this guy for the last 3 months." 

Mathias placed his head on the table. "But how can I? I'm desperately in love with Lukas. I wish I could have what you and Elizabeta have. Being single sucks." 

"Excusee you, I'm single and I'm still very much awesome all by myself." Alfred slurred. "But what about that one guy you've been talking to? You know, the one with the really nice...butt." He started squeezing his hands together, as if he was squishing a butt.  

"He does have a pretty sweet ass- not that I've looked at it or anything." Gilbert defended, starting his fourth beer.  

"Who, Tino?" Mathias asked. "Naw, we're friends. I mean, I do think he's cute, but I don't know if I like him that way." 

"Nevertheless, you need to find someone new. You'll never find them if you keep holding on to Lukas." Gilbert responded. "He made his intentions pretty clear, after all." 

Mathias sighed and gulped down his beer. Maybe it was time to move on. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> don't forget to hit that 'kudos' and/or leave a comment! It would be much appreciated :D
> 
> tumblr: danxnorge.tumblr.com


	3. Cake at Quake

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i've started school again so i'll keep this chapter short and sweet, just like Tino lol. I know I made some people worry in the last chapter, but don't worry! Just keep reading (:

Tino was so proud of himself. He hadn't cheated on his diet in two weeks and also lost five pounds. Thanks to Lukas and his pilates and zumba classes, he was feeling more fit than ever before. But there was one still that still concerned him. In the last month and a half, he still hadn't worked up the courage to introduce himself to Berwald. He had thought up multiple scenarios of how their first real encounter would be like. The way it actually happened was nothing like he had imagined.  

Tino was busy frosting a chocolate cake at Quake when his boss entered the kitchen.  

"Tino, a gentleman really likes your desert. He'd like to pay his compliments to you; will you come out and greet him really quick?" 

Tino covered the last bit of the cake with chocolate frosting before whipping off his apron. He was always excited whenever somebody personally complimented his desserts. "I'll be right there!" He exited the kitchen doors and dusted himself off before following his boss to the table.  

"Gentlemen, this is Tino Väinämöinen, the one behind those delicious cakes you're eating. Tino, this is Ludwig and Roderich, two representatives from World Academy W, and this is their client, Berwald Oxenstierna." 

_Berwald_ _? As in, his_ _Berwald_ _?_ Sure enough, when he looked down he saw the man he had been staring at after all these weeks. Damn, did he look good in formal wear.   

Ludwig stood up to shake Tino's hand and thank him for the dessert, but Roderich was busy stuffing his face with chocolate cake. Tino noticed that Berwald had neatly finished off his plate, with this fork hanging over the plate's edge. Ludwig cleared his throat.  

"Roderich, you're being rude. Come here and thank Tino for the wonderful dessert." Ludwig hissed.  

"I can't help it that his cake is soooo good," Roderich retorted. "How did you make it so light and fluffy?" 

Tino quickly explained how he folded his batter instead of using an electric mixer. He much rather preferred making things by hand, anyway. Berwald had remained quiet the entire time. When Tino finished his story, Berwald stood up and finally thanked Tino for the cake. 

"It was good." It was a simple, 3-word response, but it was enough to make Tino's heart skip a beat. He liked something that Tino made! 

Tino didn't want this to be their only interaction (he didn't know if he'd have another opportunity to talk to Berwald like this again), so he decided to continue the conversation.  

"I'm glad you like it! Though you might need to go to the gym after eating all this cake- not that I'm saying you should lose weight or something!" Tino stammered. This was going a lot worse than he wanted. "No, no. You're in great shape, why would you need to go to the gym? It's me that needs to go to the gym, actually I think you might go to the same one as me?"   

"Yea. I've seen you around at Planet Fitness." Berwald replied plainly. He didn't seem to notice that Tino was a blabbering mess.  

"My brother, Gilbert, works at Planet Fitness. Do you know him?" Ludwig asked them. Tino nodded yes, and Berwald replied that he'd heard of him. For some reason, Tino wanted to laugh at Berwald's response.  

Roderich pointed at his watch. "We should get back to the office to close the deal with Berwald's company." Ludwig paid the bill and left his tip on the table.  

"Well it was nice making your acquaintance, Tino. Thanks again for the dessert." 

"Yeah, thanks." Berwald repeated, getting up from his seat. He gave Tino a firm handshake. "See you later." 

Tino beamed at Berwald's response. He said 'see you later', so that in fact meant he would be seeing Berwald in the near future. He patted himself on the back, thanking himself for being such a great pastry chef. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> don't forget to hit that 'kudos' and/or leave a comment! It would be much appreciated :D
> 
> tumblr: danxnorge.tumblr.com


	4. New Trainer

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> anon requested i update this fic, so here ya go! I'll try to update again soon >.<

The next morning, Tino walked into the gym with a bounce in his step and a smile on his face. Even if it was extremely brief, he had gotten over the fear of talking to his crush! This was only the beginning, he thought to himself. Well, easier said than done. As soon as he spotted Berwald, he got flustered all over again and hid in the locker room. This wasn’t Tino's proudest moment. 

Alas, all of Tino's imaginary plans to get to know his crush better flew right out the window. Even looking in his direction was too intimidating, so he got as far away from Berwald as he could. With only the thought of saving himself from embarrassment in mind, he did not notice another person walking down the stairs. With a solid oof, he ran straight into them and lost his balance, nearly falling backwards on the stairs. 

"Careful, Tino!" Warned a familiar voice. 

Tino looked up at the person who he had literally run into, his savior who caught him just in time to prevent him from falling backwards. It was Mathias. He felt a little flustered- he couldn’t even walk up the stairs without embarrassing himself, it seemed.

"Oh gosh, I'm so sorry! I wasn't looking where I was going, I should be more careful next time!" He mustered out. Today didn’t seem to be working out for him, but Mathias laughed it off. 

"Don't beat yourself over it man, it was no big deal. Luckily you didn’t get hurt. Otherwise I wouldn’t be able to be your personal trainer." 

"Wait, does that mean-?" 

Mathias smiled. "Yep, I was able to pull some strings and get a spot open for you. That is, if you still need a trainer." 

"Oh yes, of course!" He exclaimed. In all his excitement, he nearly fell down the stairs- again. Mathias caught him again, of course. 

"Maybe we shouldn’t talk on the stairs," Mathias suggested. "C'mon, let's start in the warm-up room." 

He led Tino back down to the first level to where the warm up room was. He got a yoga mat out for Tino and proceeded to coach him through a series of stretches and warm up exercises. 

Tino felt more at ease now that he had a trainer telling him exactly what to do and how to do it. It was hard to stay motivated on his own and he would get easily discouraged, but Mathias somehow made it seem so easy. In fact, by the end of the morning he had already set up a rough workout itinerary that started out easy and would gradually become more difficult. However, no matter how efficient of a trainer Mathias was, it didn't make the more rigorous exercises any less exhausting. 

Tino tried to finish his set of sit ups in one clean break, he really did, but his body would not cooperate. Finally, despite his trainer rooting for him, there came a point where he could not bring himself back up. Quite literally, in fact. His muscles locked up around his abdomen area, causing him great pain. Mathias tried apologizing for taking it too far, but Tino insisted that it was him that was at fault. 

"I don't think I can go through with this anymore, Mathias." Tino buried his face in his hands, muffling his voice. "Gosh, I'm so stupid, thinking I could actually get in shape. I'll never be like you, even if I did try." 

Mathias sat down on the bench next to him. "You're just overwhelmed Tino, you'll get there. Losing weight isn't something you can achieve overnight. My goal is to help you lose a healthy amount of weight over a long period of time. Heck, it took me years to get myself into shape, so you're not alone." 

"So how did you lose weight?" Tino asked. 

"Lose weight? My problem was gaining weight." Mathias explained. "My fast metabolism wouldn't let me put on a single pound no matter how much I ate, but if I ever skipped a meal, I would lose weight rapidly. Some people told me I should feel lucky, but they didn't understand the struggles of being a skinny kid. It took years of forcing myself to eat and working out to finally feel comfortable in my own body. I may not have the same problem as you, but I know how you feel, and I'm here to help." 

After an impromptu pep talk, Tino was ready to continue his workout routine. For the next hour and a half, albeit some struggles, he was able to follow his trainer's instructions. He even showed him how to use the machines Tino had been using incorrectly. There were multiple times that he stopped and just wanted to quit, but Mathias was incredibly patient with him the entire time. It was only day 1, Tino thought to himself. He can't quit now. They ended their session with a cool down routine in the same room as that morning. 

After he had changed into his street clothes, Tino met up with Mathias at the front counter so he could give him something, which was a list of foods of what he should and shouldn't eat. He explained that working out alone wouldn't help him lose weight. He would have to change his diet and actually stick to it this time- which was always the hardest part. Finally, they parted ways. Tino was ready to go home and rest. 

"See you later! Remember to stay away from fast food!" he called out to Tino as he exited the building. Alfred and Gilbert popped out of nowhere almost immediately after Tino left. 

"Ah! Don't sneak up on me like that!" he warned his friends. 

Gilbert raised an eyebrow and smirked at Mathias. "Care to explain yourself? We all know you're one of the most requested trainers in this gym. You couldn't have suddenly had an open slot." 

"I don’t know what you're talking about." 

"Wait, is he the reason why you asked me to cover for one of your clients? So you could spend more time with Mr. Bubblebutt?" Alfred asked. 

"His name is Tino, Alfred. Could you cover for me next week too? I kinda told him I'm his trainer even though I'm technically not. Not yet, anyways." 

"Only if you admit you have a crushhh." Alfred teased. 

"Does this mean you're over Lukas?" Gilbert asked. 

"I don't know, to either of those statements. I don't know what to feel right now. I just made an impulse decision to help Tino out cuz I felt bad for him, ya know?" 

Their conversation was interrupted by a troubling text Mathias got. It was from Lukas's little brother, Emil. He had gotten himself into some trouble at school and needed his "brother" to bail him out. He also begged him to keep this a secret from Lukas- he didn’t want to get into any more trouble. 

"Sorry guys, looks like I'll be taking my lunch break early today. Lukas's brother needs me." 

Mathias was glad he had an excuse to leave, even though it from the result of an unfortunate event. He was not ready to face his feelings just yet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> inb4 wait, i thought this was a dennor/sufin fic! im getting there


End file.
